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SpaceX Rocket explodes After Launch

NASA still reeling from previous failed shipments

(AP) – An unmanned SpaceX rocket carrying supplies and the first-of-its-kind docking port to the International Space Station broke apart Sunday shortly after liftoff. It was a severe blow to NASA, still reeling from previous failed shipments.

The accident occurred about 2 1/2 minutes into the flight from Cape Canaveral, Florida. Pieces could be seen falling into the Atlantic. More than 5, 200 pounds of space station cargo were on board, including the first docking port designed for future commercial crew capsules.

“The vehicle has broken up, ” announced NASA commentator George Diller. He said it was not clear how the disaster occurred or even when the rocket actually failed. Data stopped flowing from the Falcon 9 rocket around 2 minutes and 19 seconds, he said. No astronauts were on board.

The rocket appeared to break apart while traveling at 2, 900 mph, about 27 miles up.

The California-based SpaceX was trying to figure out what happened, noting that everything appeared to go well in flight until the rocket went supersonic.

Losing this shipment — which included replacements for items lost in two previous failed supply flights — was a huge setback for NASA in more than one way. The space agency is counting on private industry to transport cargo — and eventually astronauts — to the orbiting lab. SpaceX is one of the contenders.

This is the second failed station shipment in a row and the third in eight months.

In April, a Russian cargo ship spun out of control and burned up upon re-entry, along with all its precious contents. And last October, another company’s supply ship was destroyed in a launch accident.

This Dragon had been carrying replacement food, clothes and science experiments for items lost in those two mishaps.

The three space station residents were watching the launch live from orbit.

The space station crew is in no immediate trouble because of this latest loss. Late last week, NASA’s space station program manager, Mike Suffredini, said the outpost had enough supplies on board to make it to October or so.

Source: wwlp.com

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